Banner Mountain Homeowners Association (BMHA) Est. 1984 
Information on Prior Issues
Blue Lead Mine - Red Dog Road
Current Status: Due to significant community involvement, on May 27, 2010 the Nevada County Planning Commission reversed an earlier indication, and voted 4-1 to deny Blue Lead Mine a vested right to mine. This decision was appealed to the Board of Supervisors and then the appeal was withdrawn. Blue Lead states that they will proceed with the permit process. We will monitor the process and keep you informed. More details are available on the web page dedicated to the Blue Lead.
Pipeline Project - prior to start of construction
We are pleased that the lawsuit filed by the BMHA Pipeline Committee against NID has been resolved by pretrial negotiations. The lawsuit alleged that the Lower Cascade Canal/Banner Cascade Pipeline Project and its Environmental Impact Report (EIR) violated the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). In the settlement, the Pipeline Committee secured some favorable settlement terms as follows.
NID legally commits to install a treated water line alongside the raw water pipeline. Why is this important? Because NID's Board originally approved the treated water line as a separate project independent of the raw water pipeline project. That meant the installation of the treated water line could be cancelled at any time at their sole discretion. More importantly, it was not listed as a mitigation under the raw water pipeline EIR meaning that there would be no recourse for any property owner whose ground water well might be impaired by the process of installing the pipeline. From the beginning, this was a major concern of residents along the proposed pipeline route. Now this has been rectified.
Ultimately, the treated water line promises to be beneficial to many Banner Mountain residents, even those whose properties are not immediately adjacent to the pipeline route. Moreover, Pipeline Committee Members who signed the Settlement Agreement and whose property fronts the treated water line are entitled to a capping of the capacity and connection fee for treated water at the current cost of $6985. This requires an initial deposit of $2500 with the remainder being due within 30 days after completion of the treated water line. The connection fee has escalated significantly in recent years and would otherwise likely increase.
Any Pipeline Committee Member signatory whose property fronts the pipeline route has also had the option to require NID to begin monitoring the performance of their ground water well starting before and extending during and ending about 2 years after installation of the water lines. If well production is significantly impaired, the property owner may connect to the treated water line at no cost.
To address resident concerns about pesticides, NID agreed not to use herbicides during the pre-construction, construction and post-construction or maintenance phases of the project.
NID will consult with the Nevada County Consolidated Fire District regarding the location but not the number of fire hydrants to be installed as part of the project.
Finally, Pipeline Committee Members have legally compelled NID to perform all mitigation measures described in the final EIR.
The Settlement Agreement is the end result of many years of hard work and organizational effort by the Committee and especially Karen Burford, the Committee Chair. This started with informing neighbors of the potential harms of the proposed project, organizing a response to the Environmental Impact Report, deciding to file a lawsuit when it appeared that the final EIR did not provide sufficient mitigations for potential harm and finally, negotiating the Settlement Agreement. Thanks go also to Marsha Burch, attorney for the Pipeline Committee, for her wise counsel throughout this undertaking.